


Operation Chrashley

by zach_stone



Category: Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Pre-Canon, Everyone Is Alive, F/M, nobody throws a party like Josh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2015-10-07
Packaged: 2018-04-25 06:37:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4950391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zach_stone/pseuds/zach_stone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Josh is well-known for his weirdly detailed schemes and his excellent parties. And he's determined to use both of these talents to get two of his friends together. </p>
<p>High School/Pre-Canon possible AU; Chris and Ashley need to get on with it already, am I right?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Operation Chrashley

**Author's Note:**

> Help I can't stop writing Until Dawn fics.

Josh is throwing a party. Of course he is; it’s kind of his thing. Every birthday bash, holiday get-together or spring break rager his friends have ever had has been hosted by Josh Washington. And that’s because Josh is a schemer; he’s a mastermind at plotting and planning every little detail of an event, ensuring that all his friends have the best possible time.

And this particular party, he’s got Chris in mind. It’s not like he’s throwing the thing specifically on his best friend’s behalf or anything -- that would be silly. But Josh knows that Chris has got it bad for Ashley, and he _also_ knows that Chris isn’t going to do a damn thing about it without a nudge in the right direction. And Josh is just oh so good at nudging.

“I still think you should just mind your own beeswax when it comes to people’s love lives,” Beth tells him a few days before the party, watching him carefully craft a playlist for the event. “Chris is perfectly capable of making his own decisions.”

Josh snorts. “Give me a break, sis. If I leave Chris to his own devices, he’ll get married to his freakin’ phone before he makes a move on Ashley.”

“I think it’s cute that they’re both so shy about it,” Hannah says dreamily, leaning against Beth’s side. “They’re adorable.”

“Cute or not, they’re making me lose my damn mind,” Josh says. “Beth, come on, back me up. You’ve gotta admit it’s getting ridiculous at this point.”

“Yeah, okay,” she allows. “But is all this fanfare really necessary?”

“I am simply giving the two lovebirds the proper setting,” he says airily. “Trust me. I’m a pro at this shit.”

“Can’t argue with that,” Beth says, tousling his hair and then scampering away before he can yell at her for it.

**

The night of the party arrives, and Josh couldn’t be more excited. All of his friends (minus Chris and Ashley, of course) know the gameplan. This is a little unusual, since Josh tends to keep only a select few in the know when he’s orchestrating something like this, but Operation Chrashley, as he’s calling it, requires everyone’s full cooperation. When the party is officially underway, music bumping and mood lighting reminiscent of a club, Josh finds Chris standing by the bar.

“What’s up bro?” he says, slapping Chris on the back. “You stoked about this party?”

“Hell yeah,” Chris says, raising his voice a bit to be heard over the music. “You really know how to throw ‘em, man.”

“That’s what I like to hear!” Josh says. “I want to give my friends a good time. Especially you, Chris. Lemme ask you something: who is the best wingman you know?”

Chris pretends to think about it. “Hmm… Mike?”

Josh looks genuinely offended. “Mike? Fuck no, dude, he’s the worst! You go out with him as your wingman and he’ll end up picking up all the girls for himself! You want to know who the best wingman is, Christopher? I’ll tell you. It’s me.”

“Of course, how could I be so foolish,” Chris says, smirking and taking a sip of his drink.

“I’m serious, bro. I wanna help you out tonight. We’ve got a lot of female friends, and most of them are single. You just say the name, I can make it happen.” He gestures in front of them. “For example, and I’m just tossing this out at random here: your good friend Ashley?”

Chris’s ears go red. “Dude, quit it. We’ve been over this. We’re _friends_ , that’s all.”

“You’re killin’ me, bro.” Josh slaps his back. “Come on, look around you! Everyone hooks up with their friends at parties!”

“I just don’t think that’s my style,” Chris says, staring into his plastic cup and swirling his beer around. “I appreciate the offer, though, for real.”

“You’re gonna have a good night,” Josh says, reaching over to refill his friend’s cup. “I guarantee it.”

Chris squints at him. “Josh, what are you planning?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” he replies, eyes glinting.

“Dude…” Chris sighs, shaking his head. “Just, don’t do anything embarrassing, please?”

“Perish the thought,” Josh says. “I’ll catch up with you later, Cochise.” He walks backwards away from Chris, bouncing his shoulders up and down to the beat of the song. Chris laughs.

Josh isn’t super close with Ashley; she’s more Hannah and Beth’s friend than his, really. Still, that doesn’t stop him from sidling up to her and bumping her hip with his. “Hey hey hey,” he says. “Having fun yet?”

“Hi Josh!” she says, looking a little startled but happy to see him. “Yeah, I am. The music’s great, did you pick it out?”

He nods, grinning. “One of my many talents. You like this song?” Britney Spears’s “Hold It Against Me” is currently blasting through the speakers. Ashley nods emphatically. “Wow. This is a pretty sexy song, Ash. Make you think of someone?”

She elbows him. “None of your business.”

“Maybe you’ve got the hots for our dear Mr. Class Prez over there?” Josh says, nodding to where Mike is standing by the couch talking to Beth and Hannah, the latter of whom couldn’t be more heart-eyed if she tried.

Ashley wrinkles her nose. “Mike? Nah. I mean, he’s cool and everything, but not my type. Too jocky for my tastes.”

“Fair enough,” Josh says. “You’re more into the nerdy guys, huh?”

He doesn’t miss the way her eyes flicker across the room to Chris, who is currently absorbed in something on his phone. Josh’s smile widens. Hook, line, sinker.

“Nerds are better, yeah,” Ashley says, a small smile on her face. Chris seems to sense that there are eyes on him, because he glances up to see both Josh and Ashley staring at him, Ashley looking fond and Josh looking positively victorious. He gives them both a slightly confused look and raises his hand in an awkward wave. Ashley’s eyes widen and she waves back before quickly looking away, taking a huge gulp of her drink. Josh wiggles his eyebrows at Chris, who gives him a “really?” sort of look.

“Well, if you’ll excuse me, Ash, there’s a shot of whiskey calling my name. Have fun!” He saunters away, feeling smug as all hell. The seeds have been planted. Now it’s just time for stage two.

Stage two comes when everyone is in various stages of inebriation and all ten teenagers are lounging about, talking or dancing, and Jess says in a too-loud voice, “Oh my God, you guys, let’s play spin the bottle!”

Everyone agrees eagerly, and they form a circle in the middle of the floor, Matt grabbing an empty beer bottle from the bar and placing it in the middle of the ring. According to the plan Josh had laid out pre-party, everyone is sitting in a specific place, so that Chris is to Josh’s left and Ashley is almost directly across from him, wedged between Beth and Mike. They go around the circle, whooping and whistling every time someone kisses. Hannah and Sam share a giggly smooch, and Jess plants one on Josh that leaves them both blushing. When Josh pulls back from Jessica, he purposefully pushes his knee down on the bottle, breaking it.

“Whoops,” he says. Reaching up for the special bottle he’d prepped on the table earlier that evening, he swaps in the new one and gestures to Chris. “All yours, bro.”

This new bottle, the one Josh just put in, is one of a very specific weight and shape. He’s designed it so that, given the positions Ashley and Chris are in, it is guaranteed to land on Ashley when Chris spins it. Chris makes a big show of spinning the bottle, and everyone waits with far more anticipation than they’ve done all night. But before the bottle stops spinning, Chris looks up at Ashley and says with some concern, “Ash, your nose!”

She reaches a hand up to touch her nose, and blood is on her fingers when she pulls back. “Oh fuck,” she says. “This stupid dry weather, I’ve been getting like three bloody noses a day!” She stands up, the bottle still slowing down. “I’ll be right back, you guys can keep playing.” Everyone except Chris is now looking at Josh with wide eyes. It takes all he has not to slap a hand to his own forehead. The bottle stops, pointing at the space where Ashley was sitting, but which is now filled by Beth and Mike’s arms. Chris frowns.

“Um, which one of you am I kissing?” he says.

“I don’t wanna kiss you, you’re practically my brother,” Beth says. Chris tilts his head, conceding. Then he looks at Mike, eyebrows raised.

“Golly, does that mean _I_ get to kiss class president Michael Munroe?”

Mike, pretty drunk and ever a good sport, leans forward with a grin. “Pucker up, bruh,” he slurs.

And never let it be said that Michael Munroe does not give his all when playing spin the bottle. He even uses tongue, causing Chris to pull away in disgust.

“Ugh, dude, gross,” he complains. Mike just smirks and leans back on his hands, looking proud of himself. While the two were locking lips, Josh swapped out the weighted bottle for a regular one, feeling thoroughly annoyed at this snag in his plan. Ashley returns, and she ends up getting to kiss Matt, which they both agree feels really weird.

After everyone’s had a go, they’re ready to get back to drinking and dancing, and Josh stands moodily in the corner, nursing a beer. Sam comes over to join him.

“Bummer about your spin the bottle plan,” she says.

“Remind me to buy Ashley a friggin’ humidifier,” he replies, glowering. “Everything was going so well! It was totally going to work!”

“Well, maybe it’s better this way,” Sam says. She nods in the direction of Chris and Ashley, who have their heads tilted together as Chris shows her something on his phone. “They’ll get there in their own time.”

“Uuuugh,” Josh groans. “Don’t say that. We’ll all be dead by then. Operation Chrashley was a total bust.”

Sam rolls her eyes. “Okay, you’ve got to stop calling it that.” She pats him on the back. “Better luck next time, Josh.”

 **

Chris and Ashley end up spending most of the night by each other’s sides, and Josh’s mood is greatly improved when he and Hannah totally whoop Mike and Emily’s asses in a game of beer pong. Much later, when he’s stumbling through the house to make sure everyone’s found a place to sleep before he crashes himself, he sees Chris and Ashley both passed out on the couch. Ashley’s head is on Chris’s shoulder, one of her hands resting on his leg. Josh smiles to himself, walking over to put a blanket over both of them. He supposes Operation Chrashley wasn’t a total failure after all.

 

 


End file.
